Anthroposophy’s etheric forces: exploring the relation between music and plant-growth by Paula Spiegel A dissertation presented to the Faculty of Humanities South African College of Music University of Cape Town In partial fulfilment of the requirements (50% dissertation) for the degree of Master of Music Supervisor Associate Professor Anri Herbst University of Cape Town September 2010 Declaration I declare that this work has not been previously submitted in whole, or in part, for the award of any degree. It is my own work. Each significant contribution to, and quotation in, this dissertation from the work, or works, of other people has been attributed, and has been cited and referenced. Signature: ______________________ Date: _____________________ ii When science tells of the very intricate chemical and physiological nature of plants, it is pointing to a realm of harmonious relations, describable in terms of number and proportion – such as the constant and multiple proportions of chemical reactions. But the organising factor in the realm of growth and life, in all living organs, is also describable in scientific terms. This organising factor assigns to each organ of the plant – to leaf and root, fruit and flower – its specific form. Fascinated during recent decades by the intricate relations inherent in the structure of matter, scientists have neglected the study and recognition of those forces which arrange matter into the shape and pattern of living things. (Pfeiffer 1980:3) iii Abstract In practices of non-modern, non-Western agriculture, music making has played various roles in crop growing. Contemporary modern experimentation and practice point to a modern Western interest in the possible links between music and plant-growth. Disparate experimental pilot studies show that the music-plant nexus merits a more thorough investigation than it has had. This dissertation makes use of anthroposophical ideas about the natures of living growth and sound in order to develop an understanding of how and why music and plants might be linked. An understanding of anthroposophy’s etheric forces is found to be useful in exploring the rationale for the music-plant correlation. Eurythmy (which also stems from anthroposophy) and specifically the eurythmic work of Tanja Baumgartner contribute towards a practical understanding and possible implementation of the theories. iv Acknowledgements The writing of this dissertation would not have been possible without many peoples’ help, advice, tolerance, encouragement, wisdom and love. Out of a large number of individuals to whom my gratitude extends, I would like to mention and thank the following: The A.W. Mellon Foundation for generous funding towards my studies; My supervisor, Associate Professor Anri Herbst – for many things: for making me say I’d do it; for reminding me (and sticking to her guns in doing so) of the importance of good old-fashioned hard work and consistency; for the freedom she allowed me; for the humour she found in my stubborn streak; for her understanding of my sometimes flighty nature, and her patience in reigning it in; for much laughter and chocolate, and for her open-mindedness and lively interest in many spheres of life; All those who contributed in the form of interviews, some of them cited and others used as background knowledge, for their time, interest, and support of my novel topic; My parents Di and Mugsy: for patience, encouragement, reliability, ability to see the bigger picture, love and humour. My father in particular, since he advised me on the actual writing of this dissertation, for his brilliant mind and his unerring willingness to extend himself for the sake of others; My grandmothers and my uncle Pete, for understanding my relative silence and absence for the last while; Diana van Zijl for insisting, and in hindsight I can say rightly so, that a Master’s degree is more than the collection of facts and knowledge, but an opportunity to master oneself; and for seeing to it that I gave it my best shot; My siblings Katie and Raoul, who had to put up with many an earful, and did so consistently in the way that was best for me. Raoul, being my housemate, deserves special mention for his calm through many a storm; Jody Terreblanche for her patient and graceful eurythmy photo shoots; My neighbour Frances Hardy for erudite and invaluable editorial advice; My Dutch singer friend Mattanja da Silva who, during her long-awaited visit to Cape Town, disregarding the tension in the air serenaded me through the last few days of writing; Janine Hayward for the six weeks of early mornings we spent together conducting experimental work based on some of the ideas in this dissertation: while the experiment eventually did not make it into the actual writing, it provided important background substance; and Janine’s humour, wisdom and interest were an inspiration and much appreciated. My beloved Toby, for far and away more than this little paragraph can say. His patience, warmth, will power, positive mind, wonderful humour, caring, generosity and ability to find beauty in things are exceptional and a constant inspiration, and have seen me through rough and smooth. v Table of contents Abstract ............................................................................................................................................. iv Acknowledgements .......................................................................................................................... v List of plates ..................................................................................................................................... viii Chapter One: rationale and research design 1.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Objective: towards an explanation of the music-plant nexus .............................................. 1 1.3 Personal motivation ............................................................................................................. 3 1.4 Research design ................................................................................................................... 5 1.5 Challenges of the research ................................................................................................... 7 1.6 Chapter outline .................................................................................................................... 8 Chapter Two: Non-modern, non-Westernised agricultural music contexts 2.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 10 2.2 Overview of some links between musical traditions and agriculture .................................. 11 2.3 Specific ways in which musical performance is linked with the procuring of abundant crops ................................................................................................ 15 2.3.1 Music played to control the weather: calendrical music ...................................... 15 2.3.2 Music played specifically for crop growth. .......................................................... 18 2.4 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................... 20 Chapter Three: Twentieth and twenty-first century experiments into music and plant- growth 3.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 22 3.2 Experiments investigating the effects of musical and other sound on living plant organisms ................................................................................................... 23 3.2.1 Retallack (1973): The effects of different music on plant-growth ....................... 23 3.2.2 Charnoe (1972): a technological sound approach ................................................ 24 3.2.3 Hou and Mooneyham (1999): agri-wave technology .......................................... 26 3.2.4 Creath and Schwarz (2004): seed germination bioassay ...................................... 26 3.2.5 Ekici et al. (2007): effects of different musical intervallic tendencies on root growth and mitosis in onion plants ....................................... 27 3.3 Functional music in modern agricultural practice: the Appelbaum case study ................... 28 3.4 The Appelbaums’ theoretical background .......................................................................... 30 3.5 Chladni’s sound figures and imagery of the formative principles of sound ....................... 32 3.6 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................... 35 vi Chapter Four: Etheric energies understood anthroposophically as the link between sound and plant-growth 4.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 36 4.1.1 Animu as life substance in Kalankira ...................................................................... 38 4.1.2 Principles underlying Charnoe’s (1972) and Mi-Jeong Jeong et al.’s (2008) explanations for the music-plant link ..................................................................... 39 4.2 Definitions of ether .............................................................................................................. 39 4.2.1 Anthroposophy’s ethers as observed in the